Attempting to cement its presence in the fiber-optics arena, communications and life sciences technology provider Agilent Technologies Inc. Tuesday moved to acquire fiber-optic technology laboratory Gefran Silicon Microsystem S.r.l for about $55 million in cash.
Northern-Italy-based Silicon Microsystem is an operation of Gefran Sensori S.r.l., part of Gefran S.p.A. of Provaglio d’Iseo, Italy.
Agilent said the acquisition will grant it time-to-market advantages in its expanding fiber-optic component offerings.
“Silicon Microsystem will become a natural extension of Agilent’s Turin Technology Center (TTC), itself a recent acquisition, which focuses on fiber-optic technology used in communications networks,” said Dick M. Chang, vice president and general manager of Agilent’s Network Solutions Division. “Silicon Microsystem’s expertise is complementary to Agilent’s strengths in fiber-optic transceivers, where we are a world leader.”
Agilent anticipates closing the deal in six weeks after closing conditions have been met.